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Much to our shame, we hadn’t really heard of the wines of Albert Boxler until winemaker friends shared a bottle of 2011 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg with us while in the South West of France. We were overwhelmed by the sheer magnificence of the wine and soon became aware that Jean Boxler was unquestionably making some of the very best wines in Alsace.
The Boxler family moved from Switzerland in the 17th century to settle in the quaint village of Niedermorschwihr, ten kilometres west of Colmar. Jean’s grandfather, who had a small hotel and restaurant in the village, produced wine for the family, as well as for his business. He began to bottle and sell his own wine in the mid 1900s, and later his son Jean-Marc followed in his footsteps. In the late 1990s, when Jean’s parents retired, the young man was left in charge of the domaine almost overnight.
Boxler’s vineyards are predominantly situated on extremely steep slopes (45º) prohibiting any kind of mechanical work, especially on the granitic hillsides of the prestigious Grand Cru Sommerberg (or ‘the hill of summer’) and the Grand Cru Brand (or ‘burnt’) at an altitude rising up to nearly 400 meters.
More than anything else, Jean takes pleasure in tending the vines of his 14-hectare vineyard planted with Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer, Sylvaner, and Muscat, and a modest amount of Pinot Noir.
With his wife Sylvie, together with a small team of workers, they cultivate the soils with great patience, and they nurture the vines with expert care. They are blessed to have inherited of old vineyards that have hardly been exposed to any kind of chemicals. The couple is highly respectful of their terroirs, and given their ecological stance, it is not surprising to find them farming organically.
As one would expect, grapes are hand-picked. Although yields are low, Boxler vinifies each of his tiny parcels individually with the clear purpose of differentiating each terroir’s characteristics. In the cellar, below the family home, a battery of old oak barrels and foudres (large oak vats) reflects the myriad vineyard plots.
Each micro-cuvée ages at least 11 months, and a further one, or even two, years in bottle before release.
Jean Boxler is a genius, and his wines are without a doubt some of the finest and most sought-after in Alsace not to mention France. Harmonious, graceful, compelling, vibrant, refined, exciting, they are close to perfection. Domaine Albert Boxler’s bottles are adorned with a striking, yet distinctive, label painted by a cousin of Jean’s grandfather, and it has remained unchanged ever since.
